French Macarons flavored with Cherries

After posting recipes for almost 5 years, I realized I had never paid homage to the most famous French pastry: le macaron. Today is my attempt to correct this oversight. I made cherry-flavored macarons since this delicious red fruit is finally available in the market.

Making this delicate confection is very time-consuming but so rewarding. I'm not as good at it as I would love to be. They really should rise a bit more in volume, but the meringue still looks decent and the taste is there. The elements of the macaron are egg whites, powdered sugar, granulated sugar, almond flour and a bit food coloring. This assembly is also tricky as the shells can be crushed very easily. I simply add a small mound of cherry-flavored white chocolate ganache and then holding them by the base of the cookie, gently press the two shells together against each other to form the beautiful sandwich cookie. 

Vol au Vent Filled with Cherry Ice Cream

I love the combination of dark Morello cherries and balsamic vinegar. Since I have balsamic cherry vinegar from Bellindora on hand, I thought I would use the pairing in a dish. I made cherry vol au vent drizzled with Bellindora balsamic cherry chocolate sauce. If you've had balsamic syrup with fruits in the past, you will certainly love this uncommon flavoring as the balsamic cherry vinegar brings out the flavor of the sweet cherries. 

The vol au vent consists of a puff pastry cup that is formed using two different sizes of cookie cutters. I filled it with homemade dark Morel ice cream. As you can see from the photo, I should have been more patient and waited for the ice cream to harden a bit in the freezer and not transfer the churned cherry ice cream directly from the ice cream machine to the cooled puff pastry. Live and learn...

Cherry Chicken Tart Recipe

The filling of this tart is as delicious as it sounds. Cherry roasted chicken breasts are shredded into fairly large pieces and mixed into a creamy sauce.

The tart is sealed with a thin layer of Monterey Jack cheese. I made the flaky crust with fresh herbs: chives, creeping red thyme and Italian parsley. You could prepare the crust in advance and store it in the freezer until you're ready to bake. I served the savory tart with a large arugula salad to complete the flavorful meal. 

Reminder: I'll be giving a cooking demonstration (complete with samples!) of one of my potato creations at the Los Altos library. On Saturday, May 25th, starting at 2 pm, I will be talking about my first cookbook, Haute Potato, and cooking, and we'll have the opportunity to chat afterwards. This event is free and open to the public and my cookbook will also be available for purchase and signing. So as to be able to serve enough food for everyone, I would greatly appreciate an RSVP so you may be added to the guest list: send an email to events{at}PhamFatale{dot}com with "Haute Potato Reservation" as the subject, indicating the number of people you'll be coming with. Please spread the word; the more the merrier. I'm so excited, can't wait to meet you!

Event Type: Adult Program
Age Group(s): Adult, Teen
Date: 5/25/2013
Start Time: 2:00 PM
Santa Clara County Library District
Los Altos Library |  www.sccl.org
13 S. San Antonio Rd. | Los Altos, CA 94024 

Cherry Almond Tart Recipe

I mentioned recently that my husband Lulu surprised me with a celebratory trip to the Napa Valley. We felt it was well deserved after completing the manuscript of my first cookbook (available for pre-order). We stayed at the Vintage Inn. We've been there  before and we've never been disappointed. The hotel is located in the heart of Yountville, within 3 blocks of what seems like the highest concentration of Michelin Star Restaurants in the world. The service was exquisite as usual with complimentary champagne breakfast buffet daily and a lovely afternoon tea service to boot. It's by far the best hotel breakfast I've ever had, ranging from petite pastries, freshly-made omelets, goat cheese walnut puffs and chocolate tartlets. What truly caught my attention was the delicious almond tart with seasonal fruit. I couldn't resist making the same dessert today to remind us of our trip, and as a huge thank you to Lulu for such a fabulous, memorable vacation. Of course, the restaurants were out of this world and the scenery was beautiful; but the highlight of the trip was relaxing with my husband and baby at this lovely hotel. If you visit Yountville, without a doubt, stay at the Vintage Inn!

The tart is made with a dense, almond filling and a large quantity of fresh cherries and blueberries. I made the crust with powdered sugar, toasted rice flour and regular all-purpose flour. The result is a wonderful fruit tart oozing with sweet fruits and a crunchy crust.

Easy Cheese Appetizer Recipe

We're still in Paris and I've been feeling a little lazy as our vacation winds down. Maybe it’s a subconscious awareness that we’re about to go back to the daily grind. Still, we need to eat, and these cheese appetizers literally take about 10 minutes to assemble. This gives me plenty of time to do, well, other things.

I stacked cheese and sesame crackers, Rocamadour (goat) cheese, store-bought cherry preserves and sun-dried tomatoes into these little bites. They are so delicious, my husband Lulu could eat them by the dozen while waiting for dinner to be served.

The sweetness from the preserves and creaminess from the cheese pair wonderfully. You could make small variations using other chutneys or relishes as well.